THREATS AND RESPONSES: DEMONSTRATIONS

THREATS AND RESPONSES: DEMONSTRATIONS; Thousands of Egyptians Fill Cairo Stadium for a Protest Against a U.S. War in Iraq

By STEVEN LEE MYERS

Published: February 28, 2003

CAIRO, Feb. 27—
Tens of thousands of Egyptians gathered today in this city's main stadium for the largest protest so far in the Arab world, outside Iraq, against an American-led war to topple Saddam Hussein.

Egyptian authorities, who have in recent weeks arrested dozens of demonstrators and forcibly restricted several smaller protests against the war and against Israel, sanctioned today's rally in what appeared to be an effort by President Hosni Mubarak's government to carefully modulate public anger over the prospect of a conflict.

''By our soul, by our blood, we will redeem you, Baghdad,'' protesters chanted in unison as speaker after speaker denounced the Bush administration's threat to overthrow Mr. Hussein. The chant's coda changed to ''Palestine'' and back again, underscoring how many link the Iraqi crisis with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

''Our gathering is a message to Arab leaders and America,'' Khaled Mohieddin, the leader of the leftist opposition party Tagamua, told the crowd. ''The message is that Iraq and Palestine are questions of prime importance for us; they are more important than internal questions.''

The rally, held at Cairo International Stadium in Nasser City, a suburb of the capital, was organized by labor unions and opposition parties, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamic political and social organization that is officially banned here.

Egypt's emergency laws -- in effect, with only a brief interruption, since the 1967 Middle East war -- bar public demonstrations, making today's one of the largest tolerated in Egypt in years. With public sentiment strongly opposed to a war, even Mr. Mubarak's National Democratic Party announced that it, too, would organize an antiwar march next week.

''I think the government felt it had to do something to allow the people to speak,'' Mamoun al-Hudaibi, the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, said amid the rally's rhythmic din. ''The government has respected the will of the people.''

The stadium, with a capacity of more than 80,000, was overflowing. By some estimates, the crowd totaled more than 100,000, while the protest's organizers said that the police turned away thousands more, citing safety concerns.

Today's rally came as senior Arab leaders began to gather for the Arab League's annual summit meeting, which is to be held on Saturday in the Red Sea resort Sharm el Sheik.

Several speakers at the rally called on Arab leaders to oppose any war, but the league's 22 members have been deeply divided, with some providing bases for the American and British forces now poised to strike Iraq.

Jordan's foreign minister, Marwan Moasher, said today that the league wanted ''a unified Arab position'' that would take into account United Nations resolutions as well as the interests of Iraq, but he hardly sounded optimistic.

''Chances are small, but we must find a means to avoid war,'' he said, according to Agence France-Presse.

Mr. Mubarak has repeatedly called on Mr. Hussein to cooperate with the United Nations weapons inspections, saying only that could avert a war. At the same time, the official Egyptian news media appear to be preparing the public for a war. One official government weekly, Al-Musawar, went so far this week as to call for Mr. Hussein to step down as leader of Iraq.

''The gates of hell,'' it said, ''will not be closed without Saddam's exodus.''

To the extent today's rally served as a gauge of public moods, however, many here are deeply angered by the Bush administration's threat to depose Mr. Hussein. Thousands waved banners and posters denouncing America and Mr. Bush. ''America, are you O.K.?'' one said. ''Bush will fill your tanks with the blood of Iraq's children.''

The rally was raucous, but peaceful. When two protesters ran onto the stadium's field and tried to burn an American flag, security guards stopped them.